Therefore fbas often involve indirect measures such

Therefore, FBAs often involve indirect
measures, such as parent or guardian
questionnaires. The questionnaires
primarily focus on events occurring
immediately before and after the target
behavior occurs, but they also often
involve evaluating additional factors
that might not be as obvious, such as
sleep deprivation, medication changes,
or changes in family structure (e.g., the
addition of a newborn). Interview
questions might include the following:
1. Where is the target behavior most
and least likely to occur?
2. With whom is the target behavior
most and least likely to occur?
3. What generally happens before,
during, and after the target behavior
occurs?
4. How does the target behavior
impact the individual’s, and other
family members’, daily routines? For
example, is the individual unable to
attend certain events because of the
target behavior?
5. Describe the individual’s morning,
afternoon, and evening routines.
In addition to indirect assessments,
such as questionnaires, an FBA also
requires the behavior intervention team
to conduct direct observations. For
example, ABC (antecedent, behavior,
consequence) data forms provide a
format for practitioners to record events
and other relevant information occurring
before, during, and after the behavior
occurs (Cooper et al., 2007). Eventually,
this information might reveal a pattern
leading to a hypothesis about the
function of the target behavior (i.e., why
the target behavior occurs). For example,
direct observations might indicate that
the target behavior occurs in a specific
context or during a particular time of
day, or more explicit pattern details
might emerge, such as target behavior
occurring after the individual is denied
access to a preferred item. Although
antecedents (e.g., events occurring
before target behavior) are important to
note, the consequence (i.e., events
occurring after the target behavior
occurs) influences whether or not the
behavior will continue to occur (Skinner,
1938). For example, after all teachers
entered grades earlier than expected, a
principal allowed teachers to wear jeans.
In this scenario, if wearing jeans is a
preferred activity for the teachers, the
jeans-day provision will likely influence
early grade entry in the future.
Furthermore, events occurring after
the target behavior occurs can be
classified into a few categories (e.g.,
access to an item or attention, escape
from work or an undesired social
situation, or automatic stimulation;
Cooper et al., 2007). For example,
after conducting direct observations, a
data collector might note that during
group instruction, Emily called out to
answer a question, rather than raising
her hand, eight out of nine times. This
information, combined with indirect
measures, might lead to a hypothesis
indicating access to peer attention as a
potential reason Emily engages in
yelling behavior. Identifying peer
attention as a potential reinforcer will
assist the behavior intervention team
when creating an effective function-
based intervention. Without
identifying peer attention as the
reason behind Emily’s yelling, the